Networking The Complete Reference, Third Edition

CHAPTER

5 Cabling a Network

Although there are networks that use radio transmissions and other wireless technologies to transmit data, the vast majority of today’s networks use some form of cable as the network medium. Most of the cables used for data networking use a copper conductor to carry electrical signals, but fiber-optic, a spun glass cable that carries pulses of light, is an increasingly popular alternative.

Cabling issues have, in recent years, become separated from the typical network administrator’s training and experience. Many veteran administrators have never installed (or pulled) cable themselves and are less than familiar with the technology that forms the basis for the network. In many cases, the use of twisted-pair cable ...